Talent Show

Me with Ishibashi san.  She wants me to teach her how to Hula dance!

Dearest Family, Friends and Missionaries,

Wow, it has gotten really hot here! The humidity is pretty bad. I can literally feel the moisture in the air. Apparently with humidity, the temperature yesterday was about 111 degrees fahrenheit. Pretty crazy. I'll try not to bask in it too much. I'm trying really hard to drink lots of water. As Elder Hansen says, "Copious and clear!" =D

We enjoyed visiting with Morishita san last week. She sent us a text one morning saying that she saw my favorite band on a tv show, and she was excited because she knew I like them. She said she was surprised at how popular they were (and I'm surprised, too, since no one here seems to have heard of Kalafina). I love meeting with Morishita. She has so many good insights. She loves the scriptures, and she especially loves to study. I have seen her progress so much these last two months I've been here, and I think she will eventually be baptized. She is so receptive of the Spirit, and truly has an understanding of her Savior's role in her life.

We also visited with Saitou Shimai, an older less active sister in the branch. We usually go sit in her little piano room, and she will play as we sing hymns. She will talk our ears off forever if we let her, although we usually keep her to an hour or so. She always insists on giving us something to drink, which is usually some kind of juice or sports drink. Recently she has been giving us a lot of plum juice. I don't know why the Japanese people love that terrible drink so much. We always drink the whole cup and tell her how grateful we are, and then book it outside where we can drink water to wash out the flavor. It's pretty great.

The branch had a talent show on Saturday, and Chapman Shimai and I were pretty worried about no one planning it. We set up the program and found some people to present talents. We made cookies and had the chouroutachi bring drinks. We were worried that no one would show up and that it would just be really lame, but it actually turned out to be a really good activity. There were six members that came, and we had seven investigators come! It was a bunch of fun, and everyone freaked out when I danced some hula for them. It was a great activity, and I am so grateful to the Lord for how it turned out. I really felt the Spirit during parts of it. I think that the investigators really enjoyed the laid back activity (and the members acted pretty normal for it, so it was great!).

I am so grateful for this Gospel! I am grateful for the Book of Mormon. It brings so much guidance in my life, and I know that it can guide anyone who reads it.

I am so grateful for my amazing family and friends, who have all been such wonderful examples to me!

Love, Crandall Shimai

また木更津

Dearest Family and Friends, 

Today we had tenkin happyous, and I am excited to say that I will be staying in Kisarazu with Chapman Shimai for another transfer! This marks the end of my third transfer, which means a fourth of my time in Japan is already gone! Where does the time go? Next month I'll hit my one year left mark.

Wow, this last week was super busy! We texted Takahama san on Monday to see if she was going to be able to meet with us that night, but she never responded. Then, she randomly showed up at the church! Sadly, we weren't there, but the chouroutachi were there, and they were able to set up an appointment for us on Wednesday before Eikaiwa. This is how the conversation went: Elders: "can you come to Eikaiwa a bit early? The sisters can meet with you then." Takahama san: "Yeah! How early? Two hours?" Elders: "!! No, probably just one hour early is fine." Wow, Takahama san seems so eager to meet, and she has so much interest in learning! It is so nice to meet with someone who doesn't cancel appointments all the time, someone who is willing to make time to meet. I love Takahama san, and I feel that she will progress a lot. She said that she loves the feeling that she gets when she comes to the church. Takahama san is a miracle - she really came out of nowhere, and now she has a lot of potential!

We met with Sanae san after Eikaiwa, and she started asking weird questions about why only Alma was able to see God, and so on. It's hard, because we try so hard to explain things simply, and she totally understands, and then the next time we meet, everything is jumbled inside of her head. We've told her several times now that there is only one Holy Ghost, but every time we meet she thinks that there are more... It's really frustrating, but we'll keep working with her. We'll try to teach more simply...

We called Eiko to see if we could visit her, and she said no... then Sister Chapman skillfully talked her into letting us come over for ten minutes. We went over and ended up staying for close to an hour. Eiko said that she always wants us to stay longer so that we can talk more... so it makes me wonder if it's because she is worried about taking up too much of our time that she seems to be avoiding us. Anyway, we had a good lesson with her, and then on Saturday we went to her son's ballet performance! It was my first time going to a ballet, and it was fun to watch everyone dancing so gracefully. They danced the story of Sleeping Beauty, and I'm pretty sure the evil witch was a boy. It was super entertaining, although we had to leave early because we had another appointment. Eiko was super happy that we came, and Atsushi kun was super cute.

We went to Tateyama last week, and we got to see the ocean! We also saw Fuji san, so that was cool. Tateyama is a beautiful place. It's about an hour train ride away, but is still in the area.

I am so grateful for the message that I am sharing. I am not the best of teachers, but I know that I can still be an instrument in the Lord's hands. I may be weak in speaking, but He can strengthen me to accomplish the purpose that He has sent me to do.

I love you all so much!

Love, Crandall Shimai

Quick Update!

Dearest Family, Friends and Missionaries,

I love you all so much! Don't forget that.

We had another slow week last week. Not as many lessons as I would've liked, but I feel like I am still working hard, so I guess it's alright.

It rained a lot this last week. After Eikaiwa, we were visiting with Sanae san, and then suddenly we could hear the rain. It was dumping bucket out there! We walked home, and at one point we were walking in water up to our ankles! Then on Friday and Saturday it got super hot. It's super hot right now, and everyone says that August is way hotter. Ooh, I am not very excited for that.

We went to a concert on Saturday for Kobayashi Shimai. It was pretty fun, although it was a bit long. There were a bunch of old people singing (in fairly operatic voices) a bunch of French style songs. By the end, I think they were all just trying to hold out long high notes. It was really entertaining.

One of our investigators, Takahama san, has been looking really good. She only meets with us about once a week, but she has started coming to church fairly often. She says that she loves the peace she feels at the church, and she really fits in with all of the branch members. I really love her and would love to see her progress toward baptism. Family is so important to her, and I feel like she is in my family.

Today we met with Sanae san for lunch and we got to talk with her about the Spirit World. She has a tendency to forget everything we teach her... but she is super sweet and speaks English with a super English accent. She doesn't like scary things at all. We were sharing a little bit from the story of Alma and Korihor, and then she started reading ahead... I suddenly thought, "oh no, if she reads about the end of Korihor, she is going to freak out..." Luckily, she didn't get that far. Someday, she will read it though, but hopefully she'll already have a testimony by then.

I love you all! I'm a bit short on time this week. Just remember that we can find the answers to any questions in the Book of Mormon!

Love, Crandall Shimai

Asakusa and SCRAMBLE!

Dearest Family and Friends,

We had temple PDay this week, and I had the opportunity to do the work for one of my ancestors! (Thanks Darci for sending me some names!) I did a Japanese session this time, and it was really interesting, but I think I'll stick with the English one next time.

After the temple, we took a train over to Shibuya and went to Taco Bell! Yum! I think it's the only Taco Bell in Japan. It was the place where all the cool kids hang out. We also walked through the "scramble" several times. スクランブル is one of the most (if not the most) busy intersections in the world pedestrian-wise. The lights would all go red, and then the people would flood the street for about a minute. It was so crazy! We took some pictures, but I don't know if they can adequately describe the experience. It amazed me how there were always so many people there every time the pedestrian signal turned green.

After Taco Bell, we hopped on a train to Asakusa, a tourist temple/shrine place. Because today is the Tanabata (star festival in Japan), I was hoping that there would be a lot of cool stuff going on there, but I don't think anything special was happening. There were lots of people and shops, and it kind of made me think of the Nihon Matsuri in Salt Lake (though much bigger). There were a billion gaijin and several nihonjin wearing yukatas. We walked around and looked at stuff, and then we rode the train two hours back to Kisarazu. It was pretty fun, and I'll probably go back again sometime.

This last week was a little slow for dendou, but we still had a good week. We had exchanges, and I went to Tougane for the day. We planned to visit a referral, but it was starting to get super stormy outside - lots of rain and crazy wind. We decided to go anyway, and by the time we made it, we were pretty wet. It was a good visit though, and we hung out in the referral's genkan (small area just inside the door) for around an hour while the worst of the storm passed.

On Thursday, we met our new mission president and his wife! I hate to break it to all you missionaries (current, returned, future) out there, but I have the cutest mission president and wife in the history of missions. President and Sister Nagano are so kind and loving. They are so excited to serve the Lord and really have a lot of dendou fire. I am so excited to work with them. I know that they will lead this mission and help it become even stronger and more unified. I love them so much already, and I can feel their love for me! <3

I love you all so much! Remember to always keep a prayer in your hearts!

Love, Crandall Shimai

Transition

Dear Family, Friends and Missionaries,

This last week was our final zone conference with President and Sister Budge. It is sad to know that I won't see them again until after my mission. I am so grateful to them for all of the wonderful things they have taught me! I am excited to get to know President and Sister Nagano, though. I guess it's a blessing to have two different mission presidents - I get to learn from two great couples!

Chapman Shimai and I attended the Chiba Stake's Women's Conference on Saturday. It was fun to hear the testimonies of women of all ages. The Primary girls sang some songs for us, and the young women taught us the EFY line dance. The Relief Society women put on a fun skit about how Relief Society began. All in all it was really fun. My favorite part, though, was when a sister stood up and recited from memory the Family Proclamation! Wow, it was so powerful! I think they challenged everyone in the stake to memorize it, too. I have been working on memorizing it, too. How are you all doing with your memorization?

Yesterday was Yoru Seisankai - Evening Sacrament Meeting! There were seven of us: the four missionaries, Brother Miyazaki, Sister Sensui, and an investigator named Alex. We all had the opportunity to bear our testimonies. It was pretty fun. Apparently Kisaradzu Branch has Yoru Seisankai once a month, and I guess it makes sense because there weren't too many people there. Hopefully we can get some of our investigators to come to church sometime...

We had a lesson with Sanae san this last week at her house! We usually just meet her right after Eikaiwa, but we decided to go to her home and try to have a more formal lesson. It was amazing! She really opened up and shared her feelings with us, and we were able to read the Book of Mormon together and strengthen her. We sang a hymn at the end and it was so powerful! Wow, I love it when music is so moving! Hopefully we can have another lesson like that again soon.

We met with Eiko twice this last week and asked her why she wasn't coming to church. Her son has a ballet performance coming up soon and has had practices on Saturdays, so family fun time had been moved to Sundays instead. She said that hopefully she will be able to come to church again soon. We helped her organize her receipts, which was super fun, and we spent a lot of time just talking and building a relationship of trust. She shared with us really cool experience she had when her daughter, Marie (pronounced with three syllables) was very young. It was super powerful, and she started to cry. Eiko has so much faith! She truly is a wonderful wife and mother! I know that she will bless her family for generations.

I love you all so much! I am so grateful for your love and support! I know that this is the Lord's work. I know that families are eternal. I am so grateful for the promptings of the Holy Spirit. I love this gospel, and I love my Savior!

With love, Crandall Shimai

Aeon and Tokyo Bay

Dearest Family and Friends,

Happy Father's Day to the most wonderful dad in the world! I am so grateful for my dad and for all that he has done for me! His love and support is priceless! Likewise, I am grateful for my loving Heavenly Father. He guides me every day to do the things that I need to.

We had a busy week this week. I never realized how inconvenient meetings could be... We always had our district and zone meetings in Matsudo when I was there, so I never had to travel far. Now, our meetings are in Tougane, about an hour train ride away! This week we have Zone Conference with President and Sister Budge, our last one ever. We will have another Zone Conference next week with President and Sister Nagano, the first of many! Both conferences will be in Inage... Another hour train ride away! It'll all be worth it, though.

I'm a little short on time, so I just want to share about one of our investigators. Her name is Takahama san. We met with her on Saturday, and she talked our ears off about her family. She loves her family, and she said that she sees us as her own daughters. It was great to teach her about the Plan of Salvation. As we hugged goodbye, she almost started crying. I was surprised at how much genuine love she had for us even though it was our (well, my) first time teaching her. She came to church yesterday as well, and she said that she would do her best to come back. I think that we will see her progress a lot in the coming weeks, hopefully to baptism!

We taught the Gospel Principles class yesterday, and it was my first time teaching a lesson at church! It was a lot of fun and a great experience. I look forward to teaching more in the future and improving my teaching skills.

Today we went to the Aeon Mall... And it was the nicest mall I have ever been to! Apparently it is the second biggest in Japan. The floor was so clean that it was reflective! We walked around and looked at different shops... And we tended to gravitate to the kitchenware shops rather than the clothing shops. It was fun just to wander around and look at stuff. I looked at kimonos and yukatas, but they were all so expensive... We also went to the bay today and took pictures. It was a busy Pday!

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to teach here in Kisaradzu! I know that these people are being prepared by God. I know that this is His work. He will move it forward!

Love, Crandall Shimai

Daibutsu

Sisters Chapman & Crandall

Dearest Family, Friends, and Missionaries,

I hope you all had a great week! Mine was super busy with packing my bags and then unpacking them... I was a little stressed until I finally finished unpacking, and we just cleaned up the kitchen today, so that was great. I'm looking forward to cleaning the rest of the apartment - which, by the way, is super fancy! No heated floors, but it does feel more modern. We have a heated toilet seat, which we had to unplug because it's too hot now...

Wow, Kisaradzu is so cool! The branch is way tiny, but the church building (the first floor of an apartment building) is super nice and friendly. I love it here! Kisaradzu is way more rural than Matsudo. There is greenery everywhere! There is a river that is full of koi, and sometimes as you bike by you can see the turtles basking on the side. ^_^ Kisaradzu is on a little peninsula by Tokyo bay. We're about three meters above sea level, so pray that there aren't any tsunamis anytime soon.

My amazing companion is Chapman Shimai! We have very similar personalities. We always get each other's jokes, which is great. I love her so much, and I am so excited to work with her this transfer!

We visited a few people this week. Most of the recent converts here have already gone inactive, so I think we'll be visiting a lot of them. I think the weirdest part for me is that we don't separate the investigators based on gender... Today was my first time teaching a male investigator! It was way weird.

We teach Eikaiwa three times every week: Wednesday and Friday, and Kodomo Eikaiwa on Saturdays. After normal Eikaiwa, we teach a lady named Sanae san. She loves to play the piano, so she will play hymns and we'll sing with her, and then we'll go over the meaning of the hymns. Sanae san isn't the only investigator that we sing with – I feel like we sing with everyone here! I love it!

Another of our investigators is named Eiko. She had a baptismal date and was apparently looking really good, but then her husband was super hantai (against her being baptized). She doesn't want to ruin the relationship. Whenever she tries to bring up baptism or the church, he starts to ignore her. Super weird stuff. Apparently there are a lot of hantai husbands here. The branch has four priesthood holders - many of the members are women whose husbands are not members. I am excited for the day when Kisaradzu will become a ward, although I don't know if I'll be here.

Today we went to a Daibutsu, a large statue of Buddha. It was so cool! We walked up to the top (inside) and took a lot of pictures. There was a statue of Mary and Jesus, which made me super excited. Apparently the statue was made as a sign of peace between Japan and Siberia. Way cool.

I had the opportunity to share my testimony at church on Sunday. I feel very strongly that this is where I need to be. Chapman Shimai and I are going to light this branch on fire! We are going to visit all of the members and really help them to feel the fire of missionary work! I know that this is God's work. I know that as we involve the members, we will find and baptize people who will stay strong. I know that as we work with the members, we will see miracles.

I am so grateful for this Gospel! I am grateful for my Savior and for His sacrifice. I am grateful for Joseph Smith, and his willingness to go to God for answers. I am grateful for the Book of Mormon.

Thank you all for your love and support! Ganbarimasu!

Love, Crandall Shimai